Jan Raas
Encyclopedia
Jan Raas is a Dutch
former professional cyclist whose 115 wins include the 1979 World Road Race Championship
in Valkenburg
, he also won the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1979 and 1983, Paris–Roubaix in 1982 and Milan – San Remo in 1977. He won ten stages in the Tour de France
. In six starts, Raas won the Amstel Gold Race
five times.
Raas was a tactician and clever sprinter. He struggled on the long steep climbs but excelled on the short climbs characteristic of the northern classics.
in Zeeland
, Raas was the son of a farmer and one of 10 children. He showed no interest in cycling until leaving school at 16 when he acquired his first racing bike and started competing as a junior category, taking his first victory in Damme
in Belgium on the 21 July 1969. Further success as an amateur, including stage wins in the Olympia Tour and the national championship, prompted Peter Post
, the manager of TI-Raleigh
, to offer Raas a contract for 1975
The 22-year old had a good first seasonwith two small victories and fourth in the Tour of Belgium. The following year (1976) saw him become national champion, but at the end of that year Raas parted company with TI-Raleigh, looking for more freedom to race.
In 1977 he rode for Frisol. Victories in Milan – San Remo and the Amstel Gold Race made Post rethink and Raas was back with TI-Raleigh for 1978. Raas became the influence behind the success of the team in the late seventies and early eighties. He was joint leader with Gerrie Knetemann
, heading members such as Joop Zoetemelk
, Ludo Peeters
, Cees Priem
and Henk Lubberding
.
Raas’ highlights for the rest of his career included his 1979 world championship on home soil in Valkenburg, where he outsprinted German "Didi" Thurau
in front of 200,000 spectators. He had four more victories in the Amstel Gold Race to give a record of five. Raas regarded the Amstel Gold as his favourite race: “The Gold Race was made for me, I had no ability as a climber, but the short and hard Limburg hills were made for me”, he said. He won Paris–Roubaix at his seventh attempt in 1982 thanks to work by his team, especially Peeters.
Raas crashed in the 1984 Milan – San Remo, injuring his back and internal organs and was never the same, although he took a stage in the 1984 Tour de France. He found the training and recovery hard and retired on 28 May 1985 after a criterium at Hansweert the preceding day.
Raas’ know-how made for a natural move into team management and he became sporting director of Kwantum team. Raas found sponsors when old ones pulled out and the team received backing from SuperConfex, Buckler, WordPerfect
, Novell
and finally Rabobank
.
Raas and his wife Anja suffered an armed raid on their house in March 1994 and Raas decide he could no longer spend long periods away from home. He changed from sporting director to manager when Rabobank became the main sponsor in 1995. He spent eight years in this capacity until the end of 2003, the sponsor indicating that insoluble differences prompted Raas' departure.
1976, 1983, 1984
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
former professional cyclist whose 115 wins include the 1979 World Road Race Championship
World Cycling Championship
The UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale . The UCI Road World Championships include championships for elite men's road race and individual time trial...
in Valkenburg
Valkenburg (South Holland)
Valkenburg is a village and former municipality in the province of South Holland, in thewestern Netherlands. Valkenburg is now part of the municipality Katwijk....
, he also won the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1979 and 1983, Paris–Roubaix in 1982 and Milan – San Remo in 1977. He won ten stages in the Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. In six starts, Raas won the Amstel Gold Race
Amstel Gold Race
The Amstel Gold Race is a road bicycle race held in the southern part of the province of Limburg, Netherlands. Since 1989 it has been among the races included in season long rankings tables, as part of the UCI Road World Cup , the UCI ProTour , UCI World Ranking and from 2011 the UCI World Tour...
five times.
Raas was a tactician and clever sprinter. He struggled on the long steep climbs but excelled on the short climbs characteristic of the northern classics.
Career
Born in Heinkenszand, near GoesGoes
Goes is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands in Zuid-Beveland, in the province Zeeland. The city of Goes has approximately 27,000 residents.-History of Goes:...
in Zeeland
Zeeland
Zeeland , also called Zealand in English, is the westernmost province of the Netherlands. The province, located in the south-west of the country, consists of a number of islands and a strip bordering Belgium. Its capital is Middelburg. With a population of about 380,000, its area is about...
, Raas was the son of a farmer and one of 10 children. He showed no interest in cycling until leaving school at 16 when he acquired his first racing bike and started competing as a junior category, taking his first victory in Damme
Damme
Damme is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders, six kilometres northeast of Brugge . The municipality comprises the city of Damme proper and the towns of Hoeke, Lapscheure, Moerkerke, Oostkerke, Sijsele, Vivenkapelle, and Sint-Rita. On 1 January 2006, the municipality had...
in Belgium on the 21 July 1969. Further success as an amateur, including stage wins in the Olympia Tour and the national championship, prompted Peter Post
Peter Post
Peter Post was a Dutch professional cyclist whose career lasted from 1956 to 1972. Post competed in road and track racing. As a rider he is best remembered for Six-day racing, having competed in 155 races and won 65. Because of this success he was known as “De Keizer van de Zesdaagse” or “The...
, the manager of TI-Raleigh
TI-Raleigh
TI-Raleigh was a Dutch professional road bicycle racing team between 1974 and 1983. The team was created and led by Peter Post.The team was successful in classics and in stage races. Riders included Joop Zoetemelk, Jan Raas, Gerrie Knetemann, Hennie Kuiper, Dave Lloyd, Urs Freuler, Henk Lubberding,...
, to offer Raas a contract for 1975
The 22-year old had a good first seasonwith two small victories and fourth in the Tour of Belgium. The following year (1976) saw him become national champion, but at the end of that year Raas parted company with TI-Raleigh, looking for more freedom to race.
In 1977 he rode for Frisol. Victories in Milan – San Remo and the Amstel Gold Race made Post rethink and Raas was back with TI-Raleigh for 1978. Raas became the influence behind the success of the team in the late seventies and early eighties. He was joint leader with Gerrie Knetemann
Gerrie Knetemann
Gerrie Knetemann was a Dutch road bicycle racer who won the 1978 World Championship....
, heading members such as Joop Zoetemelk
Joop Zoetemelk
Hendrik Gerardus Jozef "Joop" Zoetemelk is a retired professional racing cyclist from the Netherlands who has emigrated to France. He started the Tour de France 16 times and finished every time, a record. He won the race in 1980 and also came eighth, fifth, fourth and second...
, Ludo Peeters
Ludo Peeters
Ludo Peeters is a former Belgian professional road bicycle racer. He was professional from 1974 to 1990. He rode ten editions of the Tour de France and won 3 stages, one in 1980, one in 1982 and one in 1986...
, Cees Priem
Cees Priem
Cees Priem was a Dutch professional road bicycle racer. After his cycling career, Priem became team manager of TVM.- Palmarès :19701971197219731974...
and Henk Lubberding
Henk Lubberding
Henk Lubberding is a former Dutch professional road bicycle racer. He was a professional from 1977 to 1992....
.
Raas’ highlights for the rest of his career included his 1979 world championship on home soil in Valkenburg, where he outsprinted German "Didi" Thurau
Dietrich Thurau
Dietrich Thurau is a retired German professional road bicycle racer. His biggest career achievements include winning the one-day classic, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, his home country's Deutschland Tour and surprising the field at the 1977 Tour de France by capturing four stages and holding the yellow...
in front of 200,000 spectators. He had four more victories in the Amstel Gold Race to give a record of five. Raas regarded the Amstel Gold as his favourite race: “The Gold Race was made for me, I had no ability as a climber, but the short and hard Limburg hills were made for me”, he said. He won Paris–Roubaix at his seventh attempt in 1982 thanks to work by his team, especially Peeters.
Raas crashed in the 1984 Milan – San Remo, injuring his back and internal organs and was never the same, although he took a stage in the 1984 Tour de France. He found the training and recovery hard and retired on 28 May 1985 after a criterium at Hansweert the preceding day.
Raas’ know-how made for a natural move into team management and he became sporting director of Kwantum team. Raas found sponsors when old ones pulled out and the team received backing from SuperConfex, Buckler, WordPerfect
WordPerfect
WordPerfect is a word processing application, now owned by Corel.Bruce Bastian, a Brigham Young University graduate student, and BYU computer science professor Dr. Alan Ashton joined forces to design a word processing system for the city of Orem's Data General Corp. minicomputer system in 1979...
, Novell
Novell
Novell, Inc. is a multinational software and services company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Attachmate Group. It specializes in network operating systems, such as Novell NetWare; systems management solutions, such as Novell ZENworks; and collaboration solutions, such as Novell Groupwise...
and finally Rabobank
Rabobank
Rabobank is a financial services provider with offices worldwide. Their main location is in the Netherlands. They are a global leader in Food and Agri financing and in sustainability-oriented banking...
.
Raas and his wife Anja suffered an armed raid on their house in March 1994 and Raas decide he could no longer spend long periods away from home. He changed from sporting director to manager when Rabobank became the main sponsor in 1995. He spent eight years in this capacity until the end of 2003, the sponsor indicating that insoluble differences prompted Raas' departure.
Major Victories
Dutch National Road Race ChampionshipDutch National Road Race Championship
The Dutch National Road Race Championships take place annually, on the weekend prior to the start of the Tour de France. First held in 1888, today it is organized by the Top Sports Group, commissioned by the KNWU.- Men:...
1976, 1983, 1984
- Amstel Gold RaceAmstel Gold RaceThe Amstel Gold Race is a road bicycle race held in the southern part of the province of Limburg, Netherlands. Since 1989 it has been among the races included in season long rankings tables, as part of the UCI Road World Cup , the UCI ProTour , UCI World Ranking and from 2011 the UCI World Tour...
1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982 - Milan – San Remo 1977
- Tour de FranceTour de FranceThe Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
Stage Winner 1977 (1), 1978 (3), 1979 (1), 1980 (3), 1982 (1), 1984 (1) - Paris–Brussels 1978
- World Road Race ChampionshipWorld Cycling ChampionshipThe UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale . The UCI Road World Championships include championships for elite men's road race and individual time trial...
1979 - Ronde van Vlaanderen 1979, 1983
- Ronde van NederlandRonde van NederlandThe Ronde van Nederland is a road bicycle racing stage-race in the Netherlands, founded in 1948. It's an annual race since 1975. Because of the start of the UCI ProTour in 2005 the tour was replaced by the Eneco Tour of Benelux....
1979 - E3 Prijs VlaanderenE3 Prijs VlaanderenThe E3 Harelbeke is an annual cycling race in the Flanders area of Belgium. The race starts and finishes in Harelbeke over 210 kilometres. The event is organised by the Hand in Hand Cycling Club of Harelbeke and is ranked 1.HC on the UCI Continental calendar....
1979, 1980, 1981 - Gent–Wevelgem 1981
- Omloop "Het Volk" 1981
- Paris–Roubaix 1982
- Paris–Tours 1978, 1981
- Étoile de BessègesÉtoile de BessègesThe Étoile de Bessèges is an early-season five-day road bicycle racing stage race held annually in Southern France, around Bessèges. Since 2005, it has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour and features as one of the first stage races of the European season.-Palmarès:...
1981